Arsenal Compete with North London Rivals to Land Barcelona Winger – Report

The news that Barcelona are prepared to allow midfielder Ibrahim Afellay to leave on a season-long loan has led to interest from a number of Premier League sides.

Arsenal are said to be interested in bringing the Dutch international to the Emirates after missing out on a similar deal for Real Madrid midfielder Nuri Sahin who chose to join Liverpool.

The Daily Mirror has suggested that Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is a long-term admirer of the winger and may well look to convince them to send Afellay to north London.

Arsenal have had to deal with Barcelona over the last month as the two clubs came to terms over a deal for midfielder Alex Song.

The relationship between the two clubs may help as it seems the Gunners bitter rivals Tottenham may also be interested in landing Afellay before the transfer window closes.

Tottenham boss Andre Villas-Boas has been working hard all summer to strengthen the squad, and has already made three signings in Emmanuel Adebayor, Jan Vertonghen and Gylfi Sigurdsson.

However, it has not been easy for the former Chelsea boss as he has had a number of bids rejected, with the likes of Leandro Damiao, Willian and Hugo Lloris all yet to join the club despite bids being made.

Spurs are also in need of a further options in midfield after Luka Modric finally completed his long protracted move to Real Madrid over the Bank Holiday weekend.

Afellay could not be considered a direct replacement for Modric, but he would certainly add some strength to the squad and provide Villas-Boas with more options.

The 26-year-old has struggled to make an impression at the Camp Nou where he has plenty of competition. His cause was not helped last season when he suffered an injury which kept him out of action for most of the campaign.

He did return to play for Holland at Euro 2012 but the Mirror has reported that he has been informed by Barcelona boss Tito Vilanova that he can leave on a season-long loan in order to prove his ability.

Afellay would certainly bring a wealth of experience to either Tottenham or Arsenal, having been capped more than 40 times by Holland and having won four league titles with PSV-Eindhoven.